How We Tested: Big Displays

Features and price are two critical factors in your buying decision, but you also need to consider refresh rates, viewing-angle performance, and smearing with moving images. For each of the displays in this roundup, we evaluated all of these issues-and more-to help you make the best choice.

Features and price are two critical factors in your buying decision, but you also need to consider refresh rates, viewing-angle performance, and smearing with moving images. For each of the displays in this roundup, we evaluated all of these issuesand moreto help you make the best choice.

First, we put all ten monitors on identical Pentium 4 systems, with ATI Radeon 9600 XT graphics adapters that have both analog and digital connectors. Then, using a stored copy of a standard partition, we refreshed Windows XP and supporting software. We installed each monitor according to the manufacturer's instructions and relied on the Windows Plug and Play feature to use the Display Data Channel information to set the resolution and refresh rate. We then verified that the resolution was set to the display's native resolution and 32-bit color depth. After that, we installed any software that came with the display, with the exception of monitor drivers unless specifically instructed to do so for Windows XP. (Most monitors do not require any drivers for Windows XP.)

After the monitor warmed up for at least 30 minutes, we started adjusting the DisplayMate images. For an analog signal, we used a pixel timing pattern to test the monitor's ability to synchronize with the pixels automatically; this feature is called auto-sync. If necessary, we used the on-screen menu system to eliminate any pixel jitter.

We then set the brightness and contrast controls to get the best shadow and highlight performance for photographs, along with good contrast and a bright image. We raised the brightness level as high as possible without raising the black level and then adjusted the contrast to show very light gray shades against a white background.

One of our tests uses a specific series of images that makes it easy to identify flaws in image quality, such as pixel defects or lack of brightness uniformity. One of the key images displays squares of red, green, and blue in varying intensities. This image is an excellent test for viewing-angle performance because it reveals changes in the image that might not be measured by the manufacturer's specification testing.

For moving images, our test moves a dark gray square on a light gray background. Two panels with the same pixel response time rating can exhibit very different amounts of smearing with this test. And although some panels show less smearing than others, all show at least some.

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